Generally when someone advertises "low hours" , and the clutch cover looks to be worn down excessively , its a sure sign that the bike actually has more hours then they are letting on , it could be they are claiming low hours since rebuild , but basically , its like looking at a car , if the brake pedal is excessively worn down , either the driver was very aggressive and was constantly driving too fast and had to slam the brakes , or the car has more miles on it than claimed , so common sense visual signs of high wear will show a bikes age unless the owner is anal like i am and cleans his bike after every ride and replaces worn parts with new ones so the bike always looks now and clean (my bikes look like they just came off the showroom every time i hit the track or trail , then after the ride they get a good going thru and freshened for the next outing)
That said , i guess it sounds like some of the bikes you looking at are 450R's not 450X's , as the X was first made in 05 , the first R was made in 02 (i have a 02 R and a 06 X) , the 02 is a good bike with the exception of the suspension takes a lot of work to get so your happy riding , the 08 was the best handling and running sought after 450R , anywhere in between has its good and bad points , for the X , in my opinion the 06 was the best year as far as stock goes , because it did not have all the smog crap that the 07 on has and it has a 2.6 gas tank , 07 on has a 1.9 which is stupid for off-road riding as it limits your travel to about 40 miles give or take total ride , with a 2.3 you get closer to 70+ miles , , so unless you want to spring for a larger IMS or Clark tank at over $200 , you're better off with the 06 if you plan on keeping the bike stock , also like the 08 450R the 08 X has a Steering Dampener from the factory (it's not like a Scotts or GPR dampener , but it's better than nothing and helps mainly with some headshake , etc) , the 09 on R has Fuel Injection , where every year prior and all years of the X are a carb , so you have to take that into account as well , if you're going to be strictly off-road/trail riding , the X might be the better bet (you can find used ones all day at around $3500-$4,000) , as the R's tend to have a tendency to stall at low speeds without the addition of a heavier flywheel or a flywheel weight added and re-gearing to a larger rear sprocket so you can actually go slow because the R gearing is tall , and a larger tank if you plan on doing over 40 miles max , so account for those expenses unless you find a used one with all the "options" you need to ride off-road efficiently , plus the X has a E-Start which is nice when stuck on a side hill or in a tough spot , you won't have to kick and wear yourself out , i have a flywheel weight on my 02 R and it trail rides fine , but i still have to kick start it
Basically you want to get a bike set up for the main type of riding you're going to be doing as there is no "one bike fits or does all" you need to pick what your main use will be and select appropriately and compromise with the rest of your riding needs , so that is up to your budget , and main use for the bike
On a related note , i paid $1650 for my 02 in 08 , so it was 6 years old when i got it , it had aftermarket black rims , a extra 3.2 IMS tank , plus the stock tank , a complete extra set of plastics , and had just received a fresh piston and had brand new tires for that price
My 06 450X i paid $6300 out the door brand new in late 05 , so it had just been released and i paid $1000 less than retail , so deals on "new" bikes are there to be found , you just have to do your research , you might need to drive 100 miles to get a good discount , but you can use the money you save to buy "goodies" and be ahead in the long run
The main "rebuilds" these 4 strokes need are Valve replacement , those of us that have figured it out , switch to Stainless Steel Intakes to solve the frequent valve replacement woes , also very important is to keep the airbox snorkle (the part in between the air filter itself and the carb) clear of dirt , the dirt getting by the filter is the major cause of valves wearing prematurely , but basically if someone tells you the valves were "just adjusted" that means the seats and valve face are starting to wear and will quickly be needing replacement , since as soon as the gap starts changing , its only a matter of time when they need replacement and the bike will no longer start , it is this way with all brands , not just Honda , on a related not ( i am a somewhat exception but long life can be obtained by switching to Stainless) my 450X had Stainless Intakes installed in 06 , and i have not had to do a valve adjustment since , i had them installed in my 02 , 2 years ago , and the same goes for it , i have not had to adjust them since , i ride my R every weekend ( injuries would be why i miss a few weekends, otherwise , i ride pretty much every weekend one of the 2 bikes
***lately i have been riding the R , i have not ridden my X since July of last year right before i broke my wrist on the MX track on my R , because the guys i am riding with , right now are mainly track riders >(i just turned 58 yesterday)< , so i have not had the chance to ride off-road this year , and since i had a heart attack in January , i wont ride alone , so i have to ride where everyone else does***) .......anyway
Compression will be low on these bikes , do not expect 150 psi , expect more like 58 psi +/- for the X , and about 64 psi +/- on the R *depending on year*, because of the Auto-DeCompressor on the cam
Hopefully that gave you some onfo you were looking for and will help with your decision making
And sorry for the long winded post , i tend to over explain when i reply....
